Senior Social Worker Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC)

Veterans Health Administration • Tuskegee, AL

4d • Onsite

About The Position

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

The CSP Senior Social Worker assists in the day-to-day operations of the Caregiver Support Program and ensures compliance and collaboration with local facility and VA Central Office Caregiver Support Program initiatives. The incumbent collaborates with the other members of the CSP team in the provision of comprehensive health care services to Veterans, ensuring equity of access, service, and benefits to this population, and ensures the care provided is of the highest quality. The incumbent provides leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs as assigned. They serve on committees, work groups, and task forces at the facility, VISN, and national level or in the community as deemed appropriate by the supervisor, Social Work Executive, or Chief of Social Work Services. The incumbent develops and facilitates caregiver support groups and educational programs and distributes educational materials provided by VA, local, state, and national caregiver organizations. The incumbent participates in direct caregiver and Veteran contacts to assess caregiver stress/burden and the development/application of directed clinical treatment interventions. The incumbent provides caregiver and family clinical interventions to facilitate the treatment of caregiver stress, psychiatric illness, emotional distress, and social needs. Professional judgment, including the knowledge of normal and abnormal behavior, is an inherent competency applied in daily interactions with caregivers and the Veterans to whom they are providing care. The incumbent is responsible for conducting regular home visits to Veterans and Caregivers participating in the PCAFC, responds to calls from the National Caregiver Support Hotline, responds to other phone calls and general inquiries regarding the CSP, and assists with general tasks associated with the program. The incumbent advises and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams throughout the medical center on caregiver issues. They are responsible for creating educational tools, developing programs, and implementing training focused on specific caregiver needs/issues and providing education and in-service training to VAMC employees, Veterans, families, and caregivers. They also provide ongoing consultation and support to colleagues regarding caregiver support services and issues facing Veterans, families and their caregivers. The incumbent assists in coordinating events and programs for the annual National Family Caregivers Month in November, which includes announcements and advertising of month-long activities, mobilization of participants, educational sessions, caregiver recognition events, and caregiver support programs. They assist program leadership in maintaining a data monitoring system to measure the efficacy of the program and assists in collecting and analyzing local data for reports to local management, the VISN Caregiver Support Program Lead, and the National Caregiver Support Program, Care Management and Social Work Service, Office of Patient Care Services. Other duties Assigned by Management.

Requirements

• Must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
• Acceptable forms of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.
• Must serve a 1 or 2-year trial period.
• Master's degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE).
• Licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level.
• Proficient in spoken and written English.
• At least two years of experience post advanced practice clinical licensure.
• One year of experience equivalent to the GS-11 grade level.
• Experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment.
• Expertise in a specialized area of practice.
• May have certification or other post-masters training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience in a specialty.
• Licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an advanced generalist or clinical examination, unless grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advanced practice level.
• Must be able to provide supervision for licensure.
• Skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in specialty treatment programs or with special patient populations.
• Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice.
• Knowledge in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes.
• Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients in the service delivery area, as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills.
• Ability to expand clinical knowledge in the social work profession, and to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area.

Nice To Haves

• Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive.

Responsibilities

• Assists in the day-to-day operations of the Caregiver Support Program and ensures compliance and collaboration with local facility and VA Central Office Caregiver Support Program initiatives.
• Collaborates with other members of the CSP team in the provision of comprehensive health care services to Veterans, ensuring equity of access, service, and benefits to this population, and ensures the care provided is of the highest quality.
• Provides leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs as assigned.
• Serves on committees, work groups, and task forces at the facility, VISN, and national level or in the community as deemed appropriate by the supervisor, Social Work Executive, or Chief of Social Work Services.
• Develops and facilitates caregiver support groups and educational programs and distributes educational materials provided by VA, local, state, and national caregiver organizations.
• Participates in direct caregiver and Veteran contacts to assess caregiver stress/burden and the development/application of directed clinical treatment interventions.
• Provides caregiver and family clinical interventions to facilitate the treatment of caregiver stress, psychiatric illness, emotional distress, and social needs.
• Conducts regular home visits to Veterans and Caregivers participating in the PCAFC.
• Responds to calls from the National Caregiver Support Hotline.
• Responds to other phone calls and general inquiries regarding the CSP.
• Assists with general tasks associated with the program.
• Advises and collaborates with interdisciplinary teams throughout the medical center on caregiver issues.
• Creates educational tools, develops programs, and implements training focused on specific caregiver needs/issues.
• Provides education and in-service training to VAMC employees, Veterans, families, and caregivers.
• Provides ongoing consultation and support to colleagues regarding caregiver support services and issues facing Veterans, families and their caregivers.
• Assists in coordinating events and programs for the annual National Family Caregivers Month in November.
• Assists program leadership in maintaining a data monitoring system to measure the efficacy of the program.
• Assists in collecting and analyzing local data for reports to local management, the VISN Caregiver Support Program Lead, and the National Caregiver Support Program, Care Management and Social Work Service, Office of Patient Care Services.
• Performs other duties as assigned by Management.

Benefits

• Competitive salary and regular salary increases
• 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)
• After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
• After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.
• Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
• Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior